I love science. I particularly love cosmology, the study of the universe, and all of its grandeur. I read a headline today that epitomizes the wonder and the vastness of this place in which we all live.
New Batch of Giant Alien Worlds Found
http://news.discovery.com/space/giant-planets-exoplanets-111203.html#mkcpgn=rssnws1
Astronomers have been searching out new worlds for as long as we can remember, but with the latest technologies, they are able to look further and peer closer to stars that were previously nothing but tiny blurs. What we’re talking here is a batch of 18 Jupiter sizes gas giants. Planets like these are not habitable, but gas giants do help cleanse a solar system of heavy debris, which can pummel smaller rocky planets like Earth. The hope is that where they find gas giants, they might find rocky Earth-like places where life may have begun to form.
Anyone familiar with the Drake Equation will understand that there is very likely a large number of Earth-like planets out there. Does it mean there is also life? I like to think so. I am certainly an optimist. For me, as a storyteller, the possibilities are infinitely exciting. Consider all of the wonderful stories we have that involve other worlds – Star Wars, Alien, Avatar, Dune, Foundation and Empire, The Wizard of Earthsea, John Carter of Mars – I can go on and on.
The current count of newly discovered alien planets is 700, and we’ve really only just begun to look. Isn’t this amazing? We live in an exciting time of learning and discovery. This is why I write. I am not a scientist, but I can’t help but let such knowledge dig into my imagination. I greatly enjoy the discovery of new characters and new place, new themes and new ideas. Every new world we discover, to me, brings endless new possibilities for new stories to tell. Isn’t it fun to discover these stories?
Nickel Crow 